HCG Diet

Plan basics:

Human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) is a hormone produced by women’s bodies during pregnancy. In the 1940s and ‘50s, a British endocrinologist named Albert T.W. Simeons promoted the idea that it could promote weight loss by suppressing hunger and prompting the body to use excess fat for fuel.

The HCG Diet is strict and controversial. Dieters consume very few calories – about 500 a day – and inject hormones or take them orally in drops. Injections are available by prescription, while over-the-counter “homeopathic” HCG has been so diluted that virtually none of the hormone remains.

The diet is popular among those who want to drop pounds fast, but isn’t endorsed by most health and medical professionals. In December 2011, the Food and Drug Administration issued a letter warning that homeopathic HCG products are illegal and ineffective, and that that the extreme low-calorie diets are hazardous.

How it works:

If you eat only 500 calories a day, consisting mostly of lean protein, you’ll probably lose weight. Dieters also inject 125 milligrams (mg) of HCG hormone. The HCG stops your body from breaking down muscle for energy, promotors say. They claim your body will burn fat reserves and that you will lose as much as 26 pounds in 26 days.

A sample diet includes:

Breakfast: Coffee or tea with artificial sweetener and one tablespoon of milk.

Lunch: 100 grams of lean meat, poultry or fish, plus one low-glycemic vegetable, like spinach, celery, cucumbers or cabbage. You also may eat one piece of Melba toast and half a grapefruit or an apple.

Dinner: Same as lunch.

Pros:

Dramatic, fast weight loss.

Cons:

Many medical professionals say this is an unsafe diet.

It’s extremely hard to sustain such a low-calorie intake.

Side effects from the hormones may be serious, including fatigue, irritability, headache and male breast enlargement, according to the Mayo Clinic.

The “homeopathic” HCG drops and injections may lack actual hormones, according to some experts. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration calls the HCG injections and drops “fraudulent and ineffective” for weight loss.

What our nutritionist says:

“It is potentially dangerous to get hormone injections, particularly when this diet hasn’t been well studied," says Katherine Tallmadge, R.D. “There is no science to prove HCG causes weight loss. This is a completely silly fad.”